Labor Department proposes rule to give miners same protection against silica dust as those in other industries

After decades of delay, federal regualators have proposed to limit the exposure of miners to silica dust to the same limits that apply to workers in other industres. Silica dust, produced from sandstone, has been linked to "the rising death toll from lung disease among mining industry workers," West Virginia's Mountain State Spotlight reports.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration, part of the Labor Department, announced the proposal Friday. Before it can take effect, it must be published in the Federal Register and MSHA must hold public hearings. It says those will be held in Arlington, Va., and Denver, but did not announce dates.

The change would reduce the exposure limit to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air from 100. “This is a good day for miners, although it has been a long time coming,” said United Mine Workers of America President Cecil Roberts. "Just two weeks ago, the UMWA had noted that MSHA under the Biden administration had not yet proposed a new silica dust rule in a statement announcing that the union was not ready to make an endorsement in the 2024 presidential race," Mountain State Spotlight notes.

"In 2018, a landmark investigation by NPR and PBS Frontline focused on the impact of silica dust on a resurgence in deadly lung disease among miners. A 2020 inspector general’s report also criticized MSHA’s inaction on the issue," Mountain State Spotlight notes. The increases were especially large in Central Appalachia, where the depletion of thick coal seams and reliance on thinner ones has led to more generation of silica dust from sandstone that lies next to coal seams.

"The National Mining Association criticized the proposal, because MSHA would allow personal respiratory protection equipment in limited situations, but not as the central compliance tool," Mountain State Spotlight reports.